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It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

Knowing,(somewhat) what the piano means to you, and under your circumstance (opportunity?), were I in your shoes, I would look for a home that offered an ideal piano room. I would not consider a home, that compromised the sound or performance aspect of the piano. I would want a home with a piano room that called to me every time I walked by it.

+1

....There aren't as many decisions as important as house-buying. Take your time to wait until you feel good about your choice.

In theory, I agree.But we can't.

I concede it must be terribly frustrating and difficult to be house-hunting when your present home is badly damaged (and I'm guessing not able to be occupied).

Would it be possible to take on a short-term rental/lease that would give you someplace to live while you take your time to find/build a house more to your liking? Yeah, moving twice is a pain and an uproar, but I keep coming back to the point that this is a decision you want to be happy with for years.

Mark_C
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Registered: 11/11/09
Posts: 19969
Loc: New York

Originally Posted By: Monica K.

....Would it be possible to take on a short-term rental/lease that would give you someplace to live while you take your time to find/build a house more to your liking? Yeah, moving twice is a pain and an uproar, but I keep coming back to the point that this is a decision you want to be happy with for years.

We have such a lease. It's what has allowed us to have some semblance of normality and order to this whole thing -- but it's not a whole lot of normality and order. It has been a very great strain, and our need to get settled again is a very big factor. So yes, I'm more willing to take some chance on this acoustics thing than to just keep waiting. But I wouldn't do it unless it seemed there was a good chance that it could work quite well -- which was why I did this thread. The replies have been extremely helpful.

Okay, this may be a bizarre suggestion, but here goes: Would it be possible to move your piano to the prospective house for a day and see what it actually would sound like in the new home? Would the sellers even consent to a trial like that? Yeah, it would be pretty expensive. But in the large scheme of things (how much the house is going to cost, and how long you'll be there), it may be worth it for the peace of mind.

pianoloverus
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Registered: 05/29/01
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Loc: New York City

Originally Posted By: Monica K.

Okay, this may be a bizarre suggestion, but here goes: Would it be possible to move your piano to the prospective house for a day and see what it actually would sound like in the new home? Would the sellers even consent to a trial like that? Yeah, it would be pretty expensive. But in the large scheme of things (how much the house is going to cost, and how long you'll be there), it may be worth it for the peace of mind.

Very interesting and I think good idea. Even better if the room is still furnished.

Mark_C
Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
Registered: 11/11/09
Posts: 19969
Loc: New York

Originally Posted By: Monica K.

Okay, this may be a bizarre suggestion, but here goes: Would it be possible to move your piano to the prospective house for a day and see what it actually would sound like in the new home?....

Tremendous idea -- but no, it's not possible, for several reasons.Main reason: The seller would have no reason to consider it, because it's such a hot market for sellers of such properties that there would be plenty of easier buyers to turn to.

And secondly, in view of the above, to have any chance for the house, we needed to proceed quickly -- and we did. (It was a multiple-bid situation, with several other buyers also fighting for it.) It's now a done deal. We signed the contract yesterday.

All of the suggestions in this thread have been very good, but some assumed a more leisurely situation than what this was -- first of all because of our personal situation, and even more so because of the current market. That's why I needed just to get the best prospective info I could -- which I felt I did from this discussion and the similar one on Pianist Corner -- and to decide if the outlook seemed favorable enough, which I thought it did. Sometimes you just have to take a chance, and I wound up thinking that this easily was a good enough chance, especially in view of all the options that have been noted. I would have loved to reduce the chance of error to 0, but I couldn't.

Originally Posted By: rnaple

Other thoughts...

In this house you're considering. If it doesn't work out with the piano. Is it one that you can add a room on the back of the house for the piano?

Good idea too, but no, that's not possible because there isn't enough land. Otherwise we definitely would have considered it.

Quote:

....I would consider tearing the ceiling out. Filling it with acoustic insulation. Then acoustic ceiling put back in. Should take care of the low ceiling problem.

We are thinking of something like that. We'll be discussing the whole thing with our personnel (architect, engineer, contractor, whomever) and even before moving the piano or anything else into the house, we may just do it.

The important thing is that you got the house you wanted, and I feel confident you will be able to work out the acoustics one way or the other. Congratulations, and I am sure you and your family will be tremendously glad to move into your new home.

Mark_C
Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
Registered: 11/11/09
Posts: 19969
Loc: New York

Thank you Monica!And really, thanks to everyone who helped on this thread and the one on Pianist Corner. The perspectives and information that I got here enabled me to feel OK about going ahead. And don't worry -- if it happens not to work out, I won't be blaming you!

Mark_C
Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
Registered: 11/11/09
Posts: 19969
Loc: New York

Update:

IT'S GREAT.

The house was finally ready for us to move in, and I was thrilled to find that the acoustics are more than fine -- less resonance than there would be with a higher ceiling, but real good nevertheless, and somehow a very rich sound.

Thanks to everyone who helped on this thread. It really did help me be confident that it was likely this would be all right, maybe if necessary with some extra work -- and I was thrilled to find that it's good just as it is.